Sam Allardyce made to pay for cautious approach

West Ham remain sufficiently clear of trouble but defeat at Aston Villa should serve as a reminder to Sam Allardyce that excessive caution in the run-in could see them dragged into a relegation dogfight.

Allardyce is the master of mid-table. There is no reason yet to suggest he will not extend his reputation for ensuring survival, with the Hammers seven points above 17th-placed Reading.

Three teams worse than West Ham remain readily identifiable. But one of them, Aston Villa, were afforded the opportunity to galvanise themselves by Allardyce’s defensive team selection and haul themselves out of the drop zone.

Villa Park was a bag of nerves — only the anxiety permeating this old ground to its core can explain Andreas Weimann’s awful miss with less than two minutes played, as he curled the ball wide after Jussi Jaaskelainen had fumbled Christian Benteke’s low drive.

Villa’s fraility was obvious and, rather than go for the jugular, Allardyce opted for safety-first, attempting to nullify Benteke and Charles N’Zogbia with three central defenders — Winston Reid, James Tomkins and Emanuel Pogatetz.

West Ham’s approach, combined with Villa’s mental state, made for a dismal first half. The visitors were bolder after the break without ever committing in large numbers. Villa boss Paul Lambert gambled by throwing on Darren Bent and Simon Dawkins and was duly rewarded. Villa were beginning to believe and, when Benteke scored from the spot after he had been felled by Mark Noble, confidence began to return.

N’Zogbia made it 2-0 when he clipped in a fine free-kick over the wall but when Ashley Westwood helped Joe Cole’s cross into his own net, a frenzied finale ensued. Villa’s much-documented fallibility from set-pieces appeared likely to be exposed as West Ham pushed for an equaliser. They reacted to every cross or corner as if a grenade had been dropped in the penalty area. Lambert’s side held on but that late scramble only reinforced the idea West Ham had erred in not going on the offensive earlier — they did not force a single corner in the first half.

The Hammers warmed to the task after the break. Andy Carroll had a shot cleared off the line when the scores were level and was denied by keeper Brad Guzan late on but by that stage the visitors were chasing a game they had allowed their opponents to grow into.

Allardyce’s tactics were understandable — no team have scored less than the eight League goals West Ham have managed on the road this season — but Villa were there for the taking and West Ham’s second-half improvement was more through luck than judgment, as Joey O’Brien’s injury forced a reshuffle that injected more width into their game. “We changed formation and played three at the back with two wing-backs — we’ve only taken one point from seven games away from home, that’s why we changed it,” said Allardyce.

“But because of the injury to Joey and the way the game went, we had to change it just before half-time and then we came out second half and overran Villa but couldn’t score.”

‘Over-ran’ is overdoing it. The Hammers exerted two consistent spells of pressure — one just after half-time and the other at the end with Villa desperate to secure their first win since December 15 — but the hosts deserved parity at least.

West Ham are surely sufficiently equipped to stay up if their home form endures. Their next four matches — against Tottenham, Stoke, Manchester United and Chelsea — are not obvious opportunities to claim points but, then again, in a season where attack is proving the best form of defence, it may just pay to take more of a risk.